Support for innovative and experimental local/regional-level projects aimed at putting in place comprehensive services to support people in (the most) vulnerable situations.
Main purpose: This call for proposals aims to support existing or new partnerships in testing innovative approaches supporting in particular the delivery of Principle 14 of the European Pillar of Social Rights. This multi-stakeholder innovative approach integrates three strands: 1) the provision of adequate minimum income benefits; 2) activation services supporting the access to employment; 3) effective access to enabling goods and services.
This call supports policy innovations and experimentations implemented at a small scale and within conditions that enable their impact to be measured, prior to being replicated on a larger scale if the results prove convincing. This allows policymakers and service providers to gather robust evidence on the effects of a given policy innovation, and to determine what does and does not work. Producing objective empirical evidence on the impact/outcomes of a social policy innovation is important in view of taking decisions on whether or not to pursue or scale up these policies either through the ESF+ or from other sources.
Objective:
- to support innovative and experimental local/regional-level projects aimed at putting in place comprehensive strategies, mechanisms and services ensuring a holistic approach to support people in (the most) vulnerable situations.
- to carry on the notion of the active inclusion approach reflected by the Pillar principle 14 on minimum income and provide for the integrated delivery of the three strands: such as the combination of adequate income support provision with [labour market] activation and effective access to enabling goods and services in an integrated way.
- to establish and enhance cooperation among various organisations (authorities and non-governmental organisations) (a) providing cash benefits, (b) delivering personalised social services and other general services and (c) providing labour market activation measures and to test its implementation.
Programme: European Union Programme for Employment and Social Innovation ("EaSI") 2014-2020 - EURES axis (promoting workers' geographical mobility on a fair basis and boosting employment opportunities)
Institution: EUROPEAN COMMISSION - Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion DG
Budget: The total budget is 10 000 000 EUR. The Commission expects to fund around 8 proposals.
Financing type:the EU grant may not exceed 80% of the total eligible costs of the action. The applicants must guarantee their co-financing of the remaining amount covered by the applicants’ own resources or from sources other than the European Union budget.
Who is eligible: The grant shall be awarded to a consortium of stakeholders (lead applicant and co-applicants), based on the following eligibility criteria:
- The lead applicant must be a public authority at central, regional or local level, or a body governed by the public law.
- The lead applicant and co-applicants must together cover the following three:
- body responsible for granting or administering minimum income benefits (or similar social safety net cash benefits),
- body delivering active labour market policy measures, namely public or private employment services,
- body delivering social services and/or enabling goods and services, namely various public and non-profit organisations providing in-kind benefits22 and support services23 to vulnerable households.
- At least one of the co-applicants shall be a non-governmental organisation.
- At least one co-applicant shall be from another EaSI Participating Country than the main applicant.